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Red Cross warns of 'critical' type O blood shortage

The American Red Cross said Tuesday it was facing a "critical shortage" of type O blood, the type most needed by hospitals.

LANSING, Mich. — The American Red Cross said Tuesday it was facing a "critical shortage" of type O blood, the type most needed by hospitals.

The organization said it has less than a two-day supply of type O blood for emergency rooms.

"That means just six units of type O blood are available for every 100,000 people, but at least 14 are needed every day," a news release said.

The Red Cross said while just 7% of the U.S. population has type O negative blood, "it can be transfused to patients with any blood type and is what hospital staff reach for during emergencies when there isn’t time to determine a patient’s blood type."